NURS 6051 Week 1 Discussion The Application of Data to Problem-Solving Example
The Application of Data to Problem-Solving
My healthcare organization is dedicated to enhancing patient outcomes by implementing remote monitoring technologies. We focus on utilizing the data collected through these remote monitoring devices to improve patient care, optimize treatment plans, and prevent complications. To implement remote monitoring, the healthcare organization equips patients with wearable devices or sensors that collect various health-related data (Escobar et al., 2020). These devices could include smartwatches, activity trackers, blood pressure monitors, glucose meters, or other specialized sensors.
The collected data may encompass vital signs such as heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, glucose levels, physical activity levels, and sleep patterns. The data collected by these devices would be transmitted securely to a centralized database or a cloud-based platform. Access to this data could be provided to healthcare professionals involved in the patient’s care, including nurses, physicians, and other healthcare team members. The information could be accessible through a secure web portal or a mobile application, allowing real-time monitoring and analysis.
Knowledge Derived from the Data
The collected data would provide valuable insights into the patient’s health status, trends, and potential risks. By analyzing the gathered information, healthcare professionals can derive knowledge in several ways:
- Early identification of deteriorating health conditions: Patterns and trends in vital signs can be monitored over time to detect deviations from the patient’s baseline (Escobar et al., 2020). This early identification enables timely interventions to prevent complications.
- Personalized treatment plans: By analyzing the collected data, healthcare professionals can tailor treatment plans based on individual patient needs (Escobar et al., 2020). For instance, if a patient’s blood glucose levels consistently show spikes after certain meals, the healthcare team can adjust the dietary recommendations accordingly.
- Proactive preventive care: Long-term data analysis can identify recurring patterns and risk factors for certain health conditions (Yari et al., 2019). This information can help healthcare professionals develop proactive strategies to prevent complications and improve patient outcomes.
Clinical Reasoning and Judgment
Nurse leaders play a crucial role in the formation of knowledge from this data-driven experience. They employ clinical reasoning and judgment to interpret the collected data regarding the patient’s overall health condition (Standing, 2020). They consider factors such as the patient’s medical history, medications, lifestyle, and preferences. Nurse leaders utilize their expertise to analyze the data, identify trends or anomalies, and make informed decisions about patient care. They integrate the data-derived knowledge with their clinical experience, evidence-based practice guidelines, and patient-centered care principles.
This process enables them to understand the patient’s health status comprehensively and make informed decisions regarding interventions, adjustments in treatment plans, and patient education. By leveraging their clinical reasoning and judgment, nurse leaders can provide valuable insights to the healthcare team, collaborate with other stakeholders, and drive evidence-based practice (Lee & Park, 2019). They can also identify opportunities for process improvement and contribute to the organization’s efforts to enhance patient outcomes through remote monitoring initiatives.
Conclusion
Utilizing data collected through remote monitoring technologies holds great potential to improve patient outcomes. Wearable devices and sensors collect vital health data, providing valuable insights for healthcare professionals to identify trends and prevent complications. Nurse leaders leverage their clinical reasoning and judgment, interpret the data, and make informed decisions for patient care and treatment plans. This integration of informatics and knowledge work enhances healthcare delivery and contributes to better patient outcomes.
NURS 6051 Week 1 Discussion References
Escobar, G. J., Liu, V. X., Schuler, A., Lawson, B., Greene, J. D., & Kipnis, P. (2020). Automated identification of adults at risk for in-hospital clinical deterioration. New England Journal of Medicine, 383(20), 1951-1960. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMsa2001090
Lee, D., & Park, J. (2019). A review for concept clarification of critical thinking, clinical reasoning, and clinical judgment in nursing education. The Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education, 25(3), 378-387. https://doi.org/10.5977/jkasne.2019.25.3.378
Standing, M. (2020). Clinical judgment and decision making in nursing. Clinical Judgement and Decision Making in Nursing, pp. 1–288. http://digital.casalini.it/9781526478375
Yari, L., Chiara, B., Sara, T., Vincenza, V. A., Elisa, A., Michele, P., & Marcello, G. M. (2019). Proactive interception and care of Frailty and Multimorbidity in older persons: the experience of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing and the response of Parma Local Health Trust and Lab through European Projects. Acta Bio Medica: Atenei Parmensis, 90(2), 364. https://doi.org/10.23750%2Fabm.v90i2.8419
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NURS 6051 Discussion Interaction Between Nurse Informaticists and Other Specialists
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NURS 6051 Week 1 Discussion The Application of Data to Problem-Solving Instructions
In the modern era, there are few professions that do not to some extent rely on data. Stockbrokers rely on market data to advise clients on financial matters. Meteorologists rely on weather data to forecast weather conditions, while realtors rely on data to advise on the purchase and sale of property. In these and other cases, data not only helps solve problems, but adds to the practitioner’s and the discipline’s body of knowledge.
Of course, the nursing profession also relies heavily on data. The field of nursing informatics aims to make sure nurses have access to the appropriate date to solve healthcare problems, make decisions in the interest of patients, and add to knowledge.
In this Discussion, you will consider a scenario that would benefit from access to data and how such access could facilitate both problem-solving and knowledge formation.
To Prepare:
- Reflect on the concepts of informatics and knowledge work as presented in the Resources.
- Consider a hypothetical scenario based on your own healthcare practice or organization that would require or benefit from the access/collection and application of data. Your scenario may involve a patient, staff, or management problem or gap.
By Day 3 of Week 1
Post a description of the focus of your scenario. Describe the data that could be used and how the data might be collected and accessed. What knowledge might be derived from that data? How would a nurse leader use clinical reasoning and judgment in the formation of knowledge from this experience?
By Day 6 of Week 1
Respond to at least two of your colleagues* on two different days, asking questions to help clarify the scenario and application of data, or offering additional/alternative ideas for the application of nursing informatics principles.
*Note: Throughout this program, your fellow students are referred to as colleagues.
NURS 6051 Week 1 Assignment: The Nurse Leader as Knowledge Worker
The term “knowledge worker” was first coined by management consultant and author Peter Drucker in his book, The Landmarks of Tomorrow (1959). Drucker defined knowledge workers as high-level workers who apply theoretical and analytical knowledge, acquired through formal training, to develop products and services. Does this sound familiar?
Nurses are very much knowledge workers. What has changed since Drucker’s time are the ways that knowledge can be acquired. The volume of data that can now be generated and the tools used to access this data have evolved significantly in recent years and helped healthcare professionals (among many others) to assume the role of knowledge worker in new and powerful ways.
In this Assignment, you will consider the evolving role of the nurse leader and how this evolution has led nurse leaders to assume the role of knowledge worker. You will prepare a PowerPoint presentation with an infographic (graphic that visually represents information, data, or knowledge. Infographics are intended to present information quickly and clearly.) to educate others on the role of nurse as knowledge worker.
Reference: Drucker, P. (1959). The landmarks of tomorrow. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers.
To Prepare:
- Review the concepts of informatics as presented in the Resources.
- Reflect on the role of a nurse leader as a knowledge worker.
- Consider how knowledge may be informed by data that is collected/accessed.
The Assignment:
- Explain the concept of a knowledge worker.
- Define and explain nursing informatics and highlight the role of a nurse leader as a knowledge worker.
- Include one slide that visually represents the role of a nurse leader as knowledge worker.
- Your PowerPoint should Include the hypothetical scenario you originally shared in the Discussion Forum. Include your examination of the data that you could use, how the data might be accessed/collected, and what knowledge might be derived from that data. Be sure to incorporate feedback received from your colleagues’ responses.
NURS 6051 Week 2 Discussion: Interaction Between Nurse Informaticists and Other Specialists
Nature offers many examples of specialization and collaboration. Ant colonies and bee hives are but two examples of nature’s sophisticated organizations. Each thrives because their members specialize by tasks, divide labor, and collaborate to ensure food, safety, and general well-being of the colony or hive.
Of course, humans don’t fare too badly in this regard either. And healthcare is a great example. As specialists in the collection, access, and application of data, nurse informaticists collaborate with specialists on a regular basis to ensure that appropriate data is available to make decisions and take actions to ensure the general well-being of patients.
In this Discussion, you will reflect on your own observations of and/or experiences with informaticist collaboration. You will also propose strategies for how these collaborative experiences might be improved.
To Prepare:
- Review the Resources and reflect on the evolution of nursing informatics from a science to a nursing specialty.
- Consider your experiences with nurse Informaticists or technology specialists within your healthcare organization.
By Day 3 of Week 3
Post a description of experiences or observations about how nurse informaticists and/or data or technology specialists interact with other professionals within your healthcare organization. Suggest at least one strategy on how these interactions might be improved. Be specific and provide examples. Then, explain the impact you believe the continued evolution of nursing informatics as a specialty and/or the continued emergence of new technologies might have on professional interactions.
By Day 6 of Week 3
Respond to at least two of your colleagues* on two different days, offering one or more additional interaction strategies in support of the examples/observations shared or by offering further insight to the thoughts shared about the future of these interactions.
*Note: Throughout this program, your fellow students are referred to as colleagues.
NURS 6051 Week 2 Assignment: The Impact of Nursing Informatics on Patient Outcomes and Patient Care Efficiencies
In the Discussion for this module, you considered the interaction of nurse informaticists with other specialists to ensure successful care. How is that success determined?
Patient outcomes and the fulfillment of care goals is one of the major ways that healthcare success is measured. Measuring patient outcomes results in the generation of data that can be used to improve results. Nursing informatics can have a significant part in this process and can help to improve outcomes by improving processes, identifying at-risk patients, and enhancing efficiency.
To Prepare:
- Review the concepts of technology application as presented in the Resources.
- Reflect on how emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence may help fortify nursing informatics as a specialty by leading to increased impact on patient outcomes or patient care efficiencies.
The Assignment: (4-5 pages not including the title and reference page)
In a 4- to 5-page project proposal written to the leadership of your healthcare organization, propose a nursing informatics project for your organization that you advocate to improve patient outcomes or patient-care efficiency. Your project proposal should include the following:
- Describe the project you propose.
- Identify the stakeholders impacted by this project.
- Explain the patient outcome(s) or patient-care efficiencies this project is aimed at improving and explain how this improvement would occur. Be specific and provide examples.
- Identify the technologies required to implement this project and explain why.
- Identify the project team (by roles) and explain how you would incorporate the nurse informaticist in the project team.
- Use APA format and include a title page and reference page.
- Use the Safe Assign Drafts to check your match percentage before submitting your work.
By Day 7 of Week 4
Submit your completed Project Proposal.
The Impact of Nursing Informatics on Patient Outcomes and Patient Care Efficiency Example
Nursing informatics links information technology, science, wisdom, and knowledge to nursing practice. The overall purpose of this integration is to improve patient outcomes and care service efficiency. Various informatics projects can be implemented to lead to desirable patient outcomes and improve care efficiency. This essay proposes the implementation of a nursing informatics project. The proposal will entail the project’s purpose, relevant stakeholders, the patient care efficiencies, technologies required, and the project team as defined by their roles in the project’s implementation.
Proposed Project
The proposed nursing informatics project entails the introduction of an mHealth platform that will be used by healthcare providers and patients in the institution. mHealth is a short form of mobile health. The mHealth platform will be introduced to all registered patients who get services from the institution from outpatient and inpatient departments. The platform will entail an mHealth application that provides patients with information on their health to enhance healthcare services access. The mHealth project also aims to promote real-time data management to help address current healthcare system inefficiencies. In addition, the project will assist patients in accessing healthcare services from the comfort of their homes through the telehealth option available on the platform. Among the services that will be provided through telehealth include patient consultations with the care providers and follow-up. More so, patient data, including assessment and monitoring reports, will be uploaded on the platform to ease access and communication between the patients and the care providers.
Stakeholders Impacted by the Project
The implementation of the mHealth program in the institution will impact different stakeholders. These stakeholders include the patients, physicians, nurses, and general caregivers. The patients are the most significant stakeholders in this project since their needs are the primary focus of its implementation. The primary purpose of implementing the project is to address patient care inefficiencies. Therefore, patients are one of the key stakeholders that the project will impact. Lavallee et al. (2020) note that patients are essential stakeholders in a mHealth project, and their needs related to the project should be prioritized. Therefore, the mHealth platform will consider different patient needs.
Care providers, especially nurses and physicians, will also be impacted by implementing the mHealth project. First and foremost, the care providers’ workflow may increase due to an expected increase in patients seeking care services through the telehealth option. According to Taha et al. (2022), many patients prefer seeking health services online, especially if no tests are required. Therefore, there is a likelihood that the number of these patients will increase, thus impacting the care providers’ workflow. Additionally, the care providers’ workload will increase since the institution can reach a broader scope, thus providing services for more patients.
Furthermore, the caregivers responsible for monitoring the patients’ real-time status and vital signs will be able to communicate quickly and faster with the care providers. Therefore, the caregivers will monitor the patients more efficiently. The caregivers will also get feedback from the care providers faster, which they can use to care for their patients more effectively, thus avoiding complications, emergency department visits, and unavoidable hospitalizations.
The Patient Care Efficiencies of the Project
As mentioned earlier, the primary purpose of the proposed nursing informatics project is to address current patient care inefficiencies. The patient care efficiencies of the project will include improved communication efficiency between care providers and patients/their families, improving the patient flow, easing patients’ appointment and scheduling, maintenance of health and wellness outside the clinical setting by enhancing remote care provision, and ease the monitoring and gathering of health-related data. Therefore, the proposed project will generally help address current patient care inefficiencies.
According to Rowland et al. (2020), implementing a mHealth project in healthcare institutions improves communication between care providers and patients. Through the platform, the patients will provide health-monitored data to the care providers, who will be able to provide feedback as soon as possible. In addition, since most patients access their mobile phones many times, it is unlikely to miss messages from the care providers. Communication between care providers and caregivers/family members will also be made efficient through the platform.
The patient flow of an institution may come with a lot of issues. These issues include emergency department overcrowding and difficulty in scheduling surgical departments. Patient flow issues may lead to adverse patient outcomes, including unnecessary hospital readmissions and increased mortality rates (Song et al., 2020). Introducing the mHealth project will address the issues related to patient flows since some patients will access the needed healthcare services from the comfort of their homes through the telehealth option. In addition, scheduling and appointment will be enhanced through effective communication and telehealth services, thus reducing patient flow-related issues.
The other patient care efficiency that will be achieved due to the project is maintaining health and wellness outside the clinical setting. Patients require clinical services even after being discharged and in the community. The care providers will provide these services through the mHealth platform. More so, the platform will ease patient monitoring and gathering health-related data, thus improving overall patient outcomes.
Technologies Required for the Project
Different technologies are needed to facilitate the implementation of the project effectively. The most essential technology is mobile phones, which the mHealth platform will be installed. Mobile phones are needed for patients and, more so, care providers to demonstrate how the application is used. However, the technology is readily available for both parties.
Electronic health records are also required for the accessibility of patient records from their mobile phones. The mHealth application has patient portals whereby patients can access their health records from their phones. It is worth noting that there is also a need for a technological application or software that will link the health records to the patient portals accessible from the mHealth platform. Additionally, internet connectivity from both sides is required.
Furthermore, patient monitoring technological devices are required for the success of this project. Su et al. (2019) note that the availability and usability of remote patient monitoring technology considerably impact telehealth. Care providers can provide efficient care through telehealth if the patients have and can effectively use the necessary patient monitoring devices. Therefore, patient monitoring technology is vital in this project.
Project Team
The project team will entail representatives from healthcare leaders, pharmacists, doctors, IT specialists, and nurses. The representatives from the institutional leaders will brief the other leaders on the project’s progress and help the team to gain support and buy-in. In addition, the doctors and the nurses will work together in delivering care services to the patients through the mHealth platform. The pharmacists will provide and review medication information on the patient portals. The IT specialists will work with the nurse Informaticists to train the patients on using the proposed platform and assist in case of technical hitches. The nurse informaticist’s role in the team is to act as the project manager to oversee and provide directions on implementing the project. Additionally, the nurse Informaticist is best suited to present the proposed project to the institutional leaders by explaining its expected patient care efficiencies.
Conclusion
The proposed project entails introducing an mHealth application for patients and care providers in the institution. The application will have different platforms such as messages, telehealth, and patient records to improve patient care efficiency in the institution. The project team will work together to enhance project success while considering all stakeholder needs and priorities. The project aims at improving communication, patient care access and reducing patient flow issues such as emergency department crowding.
References
Lavallee, D. C., Lee, J. R., Austin, E., Bloch, R., Lawrence, S. O., McCall, D., Munson, S. A., Nery-Hurwit, M. B., & Amtmann, D. (2020). mHealth and patient-generated health data: stakeholder perspectives on opportunities and barriers for transforming healthcare. mHealth, 6, 8. https://doi.org/10.21037/mhealth.2019.09.17
Rowland, S. P., Fitzgerald, J. E., Holme, T., Powell, J., & McGregor, A. (2020). What is the clinical value of mHealth for patients? NPJ digital medicine, 3(1), 4. https://doi.org/10.1038%2Fs41746-019-0206-x
Song, H., Tucker, A. L., Graue, R., Moravick, S., & Yang, J. J. (2020). Capacity pooling in hospitals: The hidden consequences of off-service placement. Management Science, 66(9), 3825-3842. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2019.3395
Su, D., Michaud, T. L., Estabrooks, P., Schwab, R. J., Eiland, L. A., Hansen, G., DeVany, M., Zhang, D., Li, Y., Pagán, J. A., & Siahpush, M. (2019). Diabetes Management Through Remote Patient Monitoring: The Importance of Patient Activation and Engagement with the Technology. Telemedicine Journal and E-health: the official journal of the American Telemedicine Association, 25(10), 952–959. https://doi.org/10.1089/tmj.2018.0205
Taha, A. R., Shehadeh, M., Alshehhi, A., Altamimi, T., Housser, E., Simsekler, M. C. E., Alfalasi, B., Al Memari, S., Al Hosani, F., Al Zaabi, Y., Almazroui, S., Alhashemi, H., & Alhajri, N. (2022). The integration of mHealth technologies in telemedicine during the COVID-19 era: A cross-sectional study. PloS one, 17(2), e0264436. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0264436